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History What Ever Happened to..........?

Discussion in 'Traditional Customs' started by OG lil E, Apr 19, 2016.

  1. demmel
    Joined: Jul 19, 2009
    Posts: 120

    demmel
    Member
    from New Jersey

    LeadEast late 80s ... 12324221c5_2799639046944363_3974786574329992566_n.jpeg
     
  2. What Ever Happened To..........? number 283.

    1939 Ford Coupe
    Owner: Jim Zimmerman
    Lexington, Kentucky

    For the final W.E.H.T. of 2021 we have a car that went through quite a transformation, although it seemed to be around the KKOA for a short time. This car made it's first appearances in the early days of the Leadsled Spectacular, and by the mid-80s seemed to be gone.
    Jim Zimmerman built this great '39 Ford Coupe with some custom touches, but overall the car leaned towards the hot rod (or dare I say) street rod style. The first information I found on the car was in Custom Cars by Hot Rod Volume 1 Number 5 from 1983 on page 69.

    Custom Cars by HR Vol 1 N5 a 1983.png

    The coupe was in the issue's coverage of the second Leadsled Spectacular in Des
    Moines, Iowa in 1982. In the first picture we can see that the car was not chopped, but had canted quads, a louvered hood and shaved door handles. The dead giveaway on this car are the unusual pinstriped seaweed style flames on the front that were on every version I found of the car. It had Truspoke wire wheels and blackwall tires. The impeccable paint and body work combined with the style of the car was enough to turn the heads of the judges at the Spectacular that year, convincing them to award Jim's '39 the "Koolest Full Kemp" award.

    Jim Zimmerman 39 Ford a 82LSS CCbyHR V1N5 p69.jpg

    The first few years of the Spectacular are very hard to find much information on, so the one picture above is all I have from '82.
    Moving on to the 1983 Leadsled Spectacular in Springfield, Ohio, I did find some real good video on Jim's '39. He was captured cruising around, and he even stopped to get interviewed by Rowdie's gal. Hard to tell from the single picture from '82, but the car looked relatively unchanged from the previous year. Our first two pictures from '83 are of the coupe approaching the interview area.

    Jim Zimmerman 39 Ford b 83LSS.JPG

    Jim Zimmerman 39 Ford c 83LSS.JPG

    In the next shot we get a closer shot of the interviewer and Jim, and we can see the great hue of the paint.

    Jim Zimmerman 39 Ford d 83LSS.JPG

    In the next shot we catch a glimpse of the tail end of the pinstriped flames.

    Jim Zimmerman 39 Ford e 83LSS.JPG

    In my last shot from '83 we finally get to see the back of the car. It has had some custom work including a frenched license plate as well as a pair of frenched '59 Caddy taillights. Notice how much tire Jim had tucked under the rear fenders. Definitely not a sled..........yet!

    Jim Zimmerman 39 Ford f 83LSS.JPG

    Over the next few years of the Spectacular, I didn't see Jim's car at the show at all. It finally made a reappearance at the show in 1986 in Springfield, Missouri. The car's absence from '84-'85 might be explained by the radical makeover the car got during that time.
    The first shot from '86 was when "Jim" was rolling up to be interviewed by Rowdie's gal, who happened to be Denise Titus (Jerry's daughter) at the '86 show. The canted quads were still there, and if you look close you can see the pinstriped flames. Also, the original front bumper was gone, replaced by a ribbed '49 Plymouth unit.

    Jim Zimmerman 39 ford g 86LSS.JPG

    As the camera rolled, we get a wider view if the car from the side where we can see a number of big changes that were made to the car. The most noticeable is the top had been chopped quite a bit. We also see the blackwalls and wire wheels were gone, switched in favor of whitewalls and flipper hubcaps. You can also see lake pipes that were frenched into the bottoms of the fenders.

    Jim Zimmerman 39 Ford h 86LSS.JPG

    When the car passed the camera and came to a stop, we get a great view of the rear of the car. The laid down roof line looked dynamite and gave the car the true custom taildragger look. We get a better view of the lake pipes, and we can see the running boards had been removed as well. The car completed the custom look with a set of tear drop skirts.

    Jim Zimmerman 39 Ford i 86LSS.JPG

    As the car was driving up to do the interview, the car had a noticeable squeak as it drove by. When Denise started talking with the "owner", she brought up the fact that the car had some sort of "trick" wheel covers that didn't spin. (On the video you can tell the car had floating spinner hubcaps that didn't turn as the wheel did as the car cruised by. This is what Denise was referring to.) I don't know if the "owner" misunderstood or didn't hear her, but he said it was because it had a bad wheel bearing that was going out. Definitely a funny interview. It kinda reminded me of "Who's on first" (lol)! Then, the guy that drove up in the car admitted that he wasn't Jim Zimmerman. Jim was too shy and didn't want to do the interview, so his buddy stepped in to do it. Definitely a Leadsled Spectacular video moment to remember.

    Jim Zimmerman 39 Ford j 86LSS.JPG

    I tried to get good profile shots of the '39 as Rowdie filmed it, but it was hard to get the whole car in the shot. From the front we can see the car is a sled all the way.

    Jim Zimmerman 39 Ford k 86LSS.JPG

    And my favorite view of the car. The back of the car looked super with the long sloping roof, long trunk line, skirts and frenched taillights and plate. Notice the '49 Plymouth rear bumper that matched the front one.

    Jim Zimmerman 39 Ford L 86LSS.JPG

    Next we move on to some rare shots of the interior. The interior isn't (50s) traditional, but was done in bright velour that was quite common in the late 70s and through the late 80s. Not a great shot, but you get the idea.

    Jim Zimmerman 39 Ford m 86LSS.JPG

    The wildest feature of the interior was the padded style "sun" that was sewn on the headliner. It reminds me of hippy style art from the late 60s. Something that might be on a Beatles or Doors album cover. Very unusual, and I'm sure it took a ton of work to pull off!

    Jim Zimmerman 39 Ford n 86LSS.JPG

    Rowdie even managed to get a peek under the hood. It was a nicely dressed small block Chevy. Tons of chrome and a tri-power on top. I'm sure this little sled was no slouch!

    Jim Zimmerman 39 Ford o 86 LSS.JPG

    After the '86 Spectacular, the car seemed to vanish. I looked through tons of magazines--even some Street Rodders from the mid-80s and I came up empty on this one. What happened to this rod turned sled? Why does the name Jim Zimmerman sound so familiar to me? It seems I may have missed something here and I hope you custom faithful can help me put all the puzzle pieces together. Let's see what you guys come up with.
    Christmas week! I told you guys it would get here fast, and here we are. I hope the season has everyone in good spirits, looking forward to time well spent with family and friends. That is the best part of the holiday for me. Looking ahead we have just a little more of 2021 left, then onward to 2022. I hope the New Year brings health and happiness to all of you, and that 2022 is better than 2021 was. I'll be here on January 4, 2022, and I look forward to "seeing" all of your smiling faces then. 'Til then, let me be among the first to wish you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. God bless!
    We'll see you soon! E
     
  3. John B
    Joined: Mar 9, 2001
    Posts: 1,433

    John B
    Member

    JIM ZIM ! ! ! He runs with Charlie Edwards and the rest of those Lexington hooligans! Give me a day or two and I'll gather up my shots of this car.
     
  4. stanlow69
    Joined: Feb 21, 2010
    Posts: 7,348

    stanlow69
    Member Emeritus

    I took this in the 80`s. I know I have a pic of it from Des Moines in 82. IMG_20211221_0001.jpg
     
  5. Glad you guys are on the job. I'm looking forward to more on this one! Thanks for posting a nice clear pic Jim! E
     
  6. @OG lil E,

    Thank you again for this thread and the work you put into it. I remember seeing the first post (almost 6 years ago!) and thinking this is going to be something very cool. 162 pages and going shows exactly that.
    I'm very grateful to you for the people I've met in person and the friendships that have developed from this thread. @KustomLincolnLady @stanlow69 @54delray @John B @Moriarity @PasoJohn and of course you Ed! I don't want to exclude or forget anyone, of course there are quite a few so let me just say Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all of the like-minded kustom fans.
    Lead sleds forever!
     
  7. John B
    Joined: Mar 9, 2001
    Posts: 1,433

    John B
    Member

    Still digging up pictures. In the meantime here's my video of the 1999 Spectacular in Lexington, KY. Starts at the 13:25 mark where I got a fleeting shot of this week's featured car.

     
  8. AChopped1950ford
    Joined: Sep 5, 2018
    Posts: 240

    AChopped1950ford
    Member

    I got a fleeting glimpse , out of the corner of my eye. I turned to look but it was gone
     
    OG lil E likes this.
  9. John B
    Joined: Mar 9, 2001
    Posts: 1,433

    John B
    Member

    Took a few minutes today to see what pictures I had on my flash drives.

    I took this one as a 17 year old kid in 1988. A car show our club put on in Olive Hill, KY around the Fourth Of July
    watermarked-234014-011619 1988.jpg


    Fast forward to 2004 and Jim shows up at a Memorial Day weekend car show we put on in Grayson, KY
    watermarked-memday1 2004.jpg
     
  10. John B
    Joined: Mar 9, 2001
    Posts: 1,433

    John B
    Member

    I'm not sure when I took these. Must have been after I bought a better quality digital camera though. Boonesbourough Boogie car show at Boonesbourough (Boonesboro) State Park just north of Richmond, KY. zimmerman1.jpg zimmerman2.jpg zimmerman3.jpg
     
  11. Thanks Bill! I really don't know what to say but that I'm very flattered. You are too kind!
    Because of the thread I have met some great folks too. It has made all the work worthwhile. It's just one more reason to look forward to the Leadsled every year. The time spent with the custom family at the show every year is priceless. When we are there the time just flies by and then suddenly it's all over and the looking forward to the next Spectacular begins. Just over seven months 'til the 41st! E

    Thanks for the video and all the great pics @John B! Nice to see clean shots to take in all the details of this awesome sled. I must say how well the car has held up over the years. In the recent pictures the car still looks amazing! E
     
  12. PasoJohn
    Joined: Aug 29, 2002
    Posts: 16,508

    PasoJohn
    Member
    from Edina,Mn.

    It took until tonight looking at way over 100,000 photos from 25 camera cards. I just couldn't find my 2014 CCR photos. but found them at 2:50 am. just 15 min ago. I have looked at a lot of Cars on all my camera cards to upload this 60 Plymouth Mayflower.
    CCR 2014 (237).JPG
     
  13. stanlow69
    Joined: Feb 21, 2010
    Posts: 7,348

    stanlow69
    Member Emeritus

    And we appreciate what you do John. Thank you. Speaking of canted and quad headlights. I did find this pic (frontal view) IMG_20211223_0001.jpg Scan0269.jpg a few weeks ago I haven`t posted yet. Featured earlier in the thread.
     
  14. stanlow69
    Joined: Feb 21, 2010
    Posts: 7,348

    stanlow69
    Member Emeritus

    While I was looking for the pic from 82, I IMG_20211223_0002.jpg ran across these two pics from the late Dave Barnes that I have in my collection. A Polaroid Instamatic camera.
     
  15. DANSLED
    Joined: Sep 15, 2005
    Posts: 159

    DANSLED
    Member
    from CW, Ohio

    this is a pic we took at the 83 KKOA in Springfield spfld 83 19.jpg
     
  16. Great stuff guys! There were so many great cars built and cruising around in those early KKOA days. Thanks for digging up all the great photos! E
     
    kidcampbell71, drdave, Sancho and 6 others like this.
  17. stanlow69
    Joined: Feb 21, 2010
    Posts: 7,348

    stanlow69
    Member Emeritus

    From Mike Keys book=Leadsleds Do you see the 34 Ford coupe, for extra points. IMG_20220102_0001.jpg
     
    Sancho, chryslerfan55, drdave and 7 others like this.
  18. What Ever Happened To..........? number 284.

    1950 Mercury "So Fine"
    Owner: Bob Johnson
    Council Bluffs, Iowa

    Back in August, I did a write-up on Bob Johnson's incredible '40 Mercury known as "Sweeter Than Wine". Here's a link back to Bob's 40 just in case you missed it:

    https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/what-ever-happened-to.1016572/page-157#post-14150038

    In that write-up I mentioned Bob's other, equally incredible custom '50 Merc. I figured that since we have rolled into 2022, what better way to start off the New Year with a feature on one of my favorite Mercurys ever built, Bob Johnson's '50, affectionately known as "So Fine".
    Bob's '50 was a confusing car to try and gather history on, as it was around almost the same amount of time as his '40. If my information hunt is correct, Bob's '50 was finished around 1976, and the '40 was completed around late 1980 or early 1981. When Bob built his '50, this was when the custom renaissance was just barely getting started, or even slightly before. This shows Bob was a hard core custom guy because around the mid 70s almost nobody was building customs, let alone chopped Mercs. Yet Bob stayed true to the old custom style that he learned about and loved as a young man.
    The first "custom" show I've read about Bob going to in the Merc was the first Merc-Deuce Reunion in Kansas City in 1979. This was a show that was hinting of things to come as it was the first show of it's kind, and it eventually led to the formation of the Kustom Kemps of America. Bob's Merc knocked everybody's socks off, and won the coveted title "King of Mercs" at that event.
    Fast forward two years to the summer of '81. The big rumblings around the custom scene was the show that was going to be held in Wichita. The KKOA had formed in the fall of 1980, and they pulled things together rather quickly to have this show. Jerry Titus wasn't sure if he was going to lose his shirt on the deal, but it was a show that had to be done to see if the custom movement was truly making a comeback. The show went on and was a great success, with customs showing up from all over the country. Bob once again decided to go to this meet and show his support for customs and the KKOA. I've never read how Bob did it, but he managed to take both of his custom Mercs to the first Leadsled Spectacular.
    Classic & Custom Magazine came along just ahead of the start of the KKOA, and managed to be there from day one when the Leadsled Spectacular, as well as other KKOA shows started. This magazine was in the right place at the right time as they featured many customs that may have never been seen since they were in the Midwest and not on the West Coast. Classic & Custom paved the way early on for the country to see many of these customs that were from the "obscure" Midwest.
    On the cover of their August '81 issue (Volume 2 Number 4) were both of Bob's Mercurys. There was a feature on each car, and choosing a favorite would have been tough. Luckily for Bob, he didn't have to!

    Bob Johnson 1950 Merc a CnC Aug 81 V2N4 cover.jpg

    Inside the magazine, Bob's '50 graced pages 28 and 29 with some super shots. The paint on the car was gorgeous, and the quality of paint matched his '40 as well. Not many guys have ghost scallops under kandy on customs these days. I wonder why that is as it is a great look! The scallop layout was very well done.

    Bob Johnson 1950 Merc b CnC Aug 81 V2N4 p28.jpg

    Bob Johnson 1950 Merc c CnC Aug 81 V2N4 p29.jpg

    In the Classic & Custom issue from October of '81 (Volume 2 Number 5) there was coverage of the Leadsled Spectacular in Wichita earlier that year. On page 37 there was a black and white shot of both of Bob's Mercs in the show and shine area of the show. The caption under the photo made mention of both cars being featured in the August issue, and the caption was true. You had to see the cars in the magazine as they were incredible to see.

    Bob Johnson 1950 Merc d CnC Oct 81 V2N5 p37 at 81LSS.JPEG

    In 1982, the Leadsled Spectacular was held in Des Moines, Iowa. This was great for Bob and many other custom fans in Iowa as it wasn't going to have to be a multiple state trip to catch the show. Once again Bob took his pair of beauties to the show. One of the best pictures I found of Bob's '50 at the '82 show was found on Rikster's website courtesy of @Sancho's searching efforts. Here we can see the sneaky scallops underneath the beautiful kandy paint, as well as the frenched antennas and the "So Fine" under the rear quarter window. Even in this old photo, you can see how vibrant the paint was. I would have loved to have laid eyes on this sled in person!

    Bob Johnson 1950 Merc f CCC-82-des-moines-kkoa-08-phil-waters.jpg

    One other pic I collected was taken by Jim Stanley (@stanlow69) "hisself" as a kid at the show. This picture is from Jim's infamous custom wall of photos in his upholstery shop. In Jim's picture with the sun shining off of the paint, the scallops are almost impossible to see. But we all know they were there, don't we?

    Bob Johnson 1950 Merc e JSC.jpg

    After the '82 show, I didn't see Bob's car on any more Leadsled Spectacular videos. It may have been there, or Bob decided to take just his '40. I did see the '40 on the '83 video, but there were no other video sightings after '83 until '86. The '50 may have been there in '84 and '85, but I have no video proof.
    If my information is correct, Bob decided to part with the '50 sometime in 1985. My dates might be off, but the car did change hands. I don't know the circumstances behind the paint change, but sadly, for some reason, the beautiful kandy paint was changed in favor of a regular (not kandy) red and flames. I don't mean to be critical here as the flamed paint looked very nice, but it didn't match the beauty of Bob's kandy scalloped paint from before. I remember reading Bill's (@54delray) post about the paint change and he mentioned needing a hat that read "Make Bob Johnson's Merc Great Again" (lol). Bill, I couldn't agree more, pal!
    I've read that Bill's Merc ended up in a few different places, but I really can't say exactly where for sure. I heard it was in Florida, New Jersey and even that it stayed in Iowa. I'm sure one of our resident custom encyclopedias (Jim @stanlow69, @Sancho, @Moriarity or @PasoJohn just to name a few) can help out with more information. Anyway, here is the first shot I found of the Merc with the new flamed paint. Picture is courtesy of @00 MACK found on Rikster's site.

    Bob Johnson 1950 Merc j new owner paint 00MackCol.jpg

    Here is another shot. Can't make out the license plates. Notice the bullet rear view mirror is gone, changed out in favor of a peep mirror.

    Bob Johnson 1950 Merc i new owner paint.jpg

    In this shot you can definitely make out the plates as being from New Jersey. Sharp eyes will also see the dual frenched antennas in the right front fender.

    Bob Johnson 1950 Merc h new owner paint.jpg

    My last pic of the new paint shows a change in wheel covers. The four bar Lancers are gone, replaced by Cadillac Sombreros.

    Bob Johnson 1950 Merc g new owner paint.jpg

    So where exactly is "So Fine" today? I was encouraged to see Bob's '40 Mercury still lives on in an excellent collection just as Bob built it. It's sad that the same thing can't be said about Bob's '50, but it's encouraging to know that it's still out there somewhere as far as we know, keeping Bob's custom legacy alive!
    I hope y'all had a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! Hard to believe 2022 is here. I hope it's better for everyone than '21 was. For many people 2021 was a tough one for many reasons. Let's all hope for the best this year.
    I'll be seeing you guys in a few weeks with another interesting feature. Until then, Kustoms Forever!
    See you soon! E
     
  19. stanlow69
    Joined: Feb 21, 2010
    Posts: 7,348

    stanlow69
    Member Emeritus

    The pic Ed posted above was actually the first time I saw Bob`s 2 Mercs. Seems they were always side by side when I saw them. The pic was taken (81) at a car show at Peony Park hosted by the Street Tiques in Omaha Nebraska. The car was sold in 82 or 83. The last time I saw it was in Springfield Ohio`s KKOA show (83) while it was rolling threw a hotel parking lot with its new owner driving. @John B can fill you in on some details. Something about Kentucky and a pet racoon. I`ll pause for now. More to come later. IMG_20211031_0001.jpg
     
  20. PasoJohn
    Joined: Aug 29, 2002
    Posts: 16,508

    PasoJohn
    Member
    from Edina,Mn.

    I found the 50 in my pix at the Ho-Jo Host Motel parked from 1982 and in my photo album I know I took 2 pix of the 40 at the show that I will have to search my albums tomorrow.
    KKOA 1982.jpg
     
  21. PasoJohn
    Joined: Aug 29, 2002
    Posts: 16,508

    PasoJohn
    Member
    from Edina,Mn.

    Here's an excellent picture of Bob's 2 Mercury's (Plus the 50 So Fine) from 1981 Wichita (Found these were taken by Pat Ganahl)
    KKOA Wichita 1981 (4).jpg
    KKOA Wichita 1981 (22).jpg
     
  22. Great information Jim. Always look forward to your input on the feature cars! Can't wait to hear about the Kentucky raccoon. Ok @John B, where you at? E

    Awesome pictures John, thanks for sharing! The profile shot of Bob's Merc sitting in front of the house is great! Bob's car had a profile that was to die for. Such a super sled! E
     
  23. Big Dad
    Joined: Dec 20, 2005
    Posts: 4,773

    Big Dad
    Member

    I have always wondered what happened to this car

    I was very young , peddled my sting ray bicycle around my home in the country in South East South Dakota
    (60's )

    This car sat in a small grove of trees and it was still there for sure well into my teens ( gravel road )
    Interstate I-29 was close and the story I was always told by older kids was the original owner worked on the interstate
    when it was being built the closest bridge was dated 1964 and it developed a issue and got left

    49 Ford , had 55 Chevy taillights and a 55 Stude front , two tone paint blue and a medium metallic green
    Had a flat head in it with some speed parts , way back when it was still in very nice shape

    I had kind of forgot about and had moved 250 miles north after technical school so, did not go back to look until maybe 1980ish ?

    it was gone , no one locally seems to know where it went , I do remember the work done was pretty nice on it
     
  24. Well gollllll-ly.....I would have though for sure you'd done this car already Ed! So many already, it's hard to remember all the ground we've covered. It's still hard for me to believe all these great customs from the 70's and 80's are gone. Customs haven't fallen from favor since then, so surely, they HAVE to be somewhere, if even disguised, like it seems So Fine must be. You'd think there'd be a known trail on these as well, but a few years of WEHT makes it clear even cool customs vanish into thin air. Hope this one turns up (as I always hope they all do)....such a great car. Sure miss Classic and Custom as well....back when I eagerly awaited both it and Scale Auto Enthusiast in the mail. :)
     
  25. alchemy
    Joined: Sep 27, 2002
    Posts: 20,407

    alchemy
    Member

    I remember seeing both of Mr. Johnson's Mercs many times years ago, as I am an Iowa boy. I also thought it was cool to see other midwest cars in a magazine such as Classic and Custom when Lee Pratt did a feature or event coverage. Once they covered the local rod run put on by my Dad's club, and his car was pictured too. Very cool for a 12 year old to see!
     
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  26. Moriarity
    Joined: Apr 11, 2001
    Posts: 30,778

    Moriarity
    SUPER MODERATOR
    Staff Member

    Here is a pic I found on the carnut site, taken at the first Merc Deuce reunion in 1979

    sofine.jpg
     
  27. DANSLED
    Joined: Sep 15, 2005
    Posts: 159

    DANSLED
    Member
    from CW, Ohio

    more KKOA 83 Springfield, Ohio pics spfld 83 1.jpg spfld 83 2.jpg
     
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  28. Sounds like a cool car Big Dad, but it doesn't sound familiar to me. If anyone remembers it, I'm sure they'll chime in. The leadsled folks that follow this thread are a wealth of custom information.
    Thanks for stoppin' in! E
     
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